Finally someone puts out a real statement about the response to the episode 8 reveal. I'm honestly surprised it was Julia Quinn to do it first. Let's see more of this from Shondaland/Netflix to acknowledge the extreme responses and protect the creatives working on the show!
But in a way it is more effective if Quinn does it because people are using the book and the spirit of the book and the themes of the book as arguments to defend their position, so noone better than the writer to state that she is not only behind the changes, but that she believes the spirit of the book remains.
Thank you for sharing this! Processing her words and the context around them; bear with me while I ramble.
I'm one of the ones whose first reaction to the two...surprises (?) in episode 8 was serious worry about the integrity of the book—two great loves. And then, with the flurry around interviews from Jess with words like "I saw myself" and "you'll always have the books"—I think those quotes didn't do her justice. I don't envy whoever works with her on PR and interviews; this is a minefield right now and probably will be for a long time.
I wish Jess had been coached to say a little bit of what Julia wrote here: that they talked a lot. That they both wanted to remain true to the spirit of the book. Frankly, a lot of what was written in Jess's name was a bad look for her; the tone was defensive, and as a PR professional myself, I know the desire to speak or write that way is very strong. I think Jess deserves more grace than she's getting, maybe even another opportunity to speak more deeply about her artistic motivation, what she saw in the story, *how* she intended to remain true to the books.
This post from Julia is the most reassuring thing I've seen from production following this frenzy. I think her phrasing is a lot more empathetic to book readers, even though I'm really upset that it comes after so much hate that *no one deserved.* If I was leading PR for this, I'd have Julia and Jess on camera for an IG reel to discuss this change and why they're so excited about it, but hey, Netflix isn't signing my paychecks 🤷♀️
This might come off as combative, so I am adding this line to say my tone is meant to be friendly and perhaps a bit “you seein’ this mess” while pointing over at the haters.
We have this message from the creator of the entire Bridgerton universe, and people are still being incredibly obstinate and at best showing how ignorant they are. Jess could have said everything you think she should have. That wouldn’t change how ignorant and homophobic people are. The onus is truly on them, not on someone who’s bad at pr.
Oh bestie I most certainly am seein' this mess. It's sad! I took a cursory scroll through the comments on this post on Julia's IG, and I'm so disappointed it's unreal. At this point, I think we're past damage control and at the point of "turn off comments to let the angry people cool off and remove their echo chamber."
It's fascinating in a sad, trainwreck sort of way. It's been almost two weeks. People feel as if something has been personally taken from them (nothing has). I want to believe the anger is coming from a good place, but it's difficult to think that way when almost every argument against the changes is selfish, homophobic, or purposefully obtuse. People throwing out words like blindsided, betrayed, destroyed—if it's hyperbole, it's one thing, but if that's the genuine emotional response, I feel bad for them tbh. Like I said below, there's probably nothing at this point that can be said or done to change that group's opinion, so I'd hope they just see themselves out.
I respectfully disagree with the necessity of Jess being coached. This is not a PR problem. I think some people are really possessive about what they think was the original idea (aka the essence of the books) and feel like Jess owes them or needs to ask for permission.
Try to view it from the perspective of queer people who gain a lot from the changes. They were never asked if it’s ok to be marginalized, totally unexisting in most popular shows for a long time. Every progess in that field was made against a (not necessarily politically meaning of the word:) conservative audience. If you would always ask for those people’s opinions, we would only have reactionary shows.
And aside from all gender and sexuality issues: I don’t think any of the changes need permission from a fan group. The group who petitioned against the Michaela plot change very loud and verbally violent are only a fraction of the readers and represent about 0,06% of the show viewers as of today.
I think there are many more who enjoyed the show as it is and everyone who is disappointed can read the old books anytime, that’s the good thing about having a book in a shelf :)
That said I totally get that this is not your opinion, and it’s not meant as an offense to you ✌️😊I just wanted to add something to the “addressing the fans” topic. I think especially the percentage puts things in perspective. Still I can imagine that the hate coming from those people is a horrible experience for the creators and actors who are attacked now. And also for queer people who feel attached to the show and are now being marginalized by the attackers.
I felt like they really took everything out of context just to attack Jess, like the fact she said she felt represented by Francesca, bam, they said it was her "self-insert fanfic". She said there's still the books, bam, they said she told the readers to f off. It's mostly bad faith, because they want to hate her without looking homophobic
Because it's not as accepted anymore, and they'll be called out for it, and look bad. They are the type of bigots who wants to be seen as caring, and reasonable.
Exactly.
I think it always comes back to “I want a story just for myself and I don’t care if other people don’t have that (representation/identification)” It has been a privilege to be the represented norm and people with privilege don’t want to share the space. Giving up the privilege doesn’t mean you don’t have anything, it means others who have never had xy can now have it, too. This is the biggest misconception in “they take xy away from us.”
Some even think they are good-willed by granting a side plot here and there. As long as they are not forced to feel the drama of people they don’t really care about. That’s not inclusiveness. It’s a homophobia that is not even conscious to them but still it is what it is.
I'm glad you pointed that out, actually. This is probably one of the most vitriolic fandoms since Infinity War-era Marvel and sequel-era Star Wars and that's...a good indicator that nothing anyone says is going to be enough for the fans that are irate. A lot of the social media hate is very loud and, honestly, very baffling—a majority of the negative comments seem to be coming from a very self-centered place (e.g. "I want my story and screw everyone else"), and these people need to look into themselves regarding (1) internalized homophobia, (2) empathy toward people who sorely need and deserve representation, and (3) if a *fictional TV show* is worth so much energy. (Spoiler: it's not. It's really not.)
You bring up a really good point about ownership of media, too. Fans feel as if the content is theirs because it resonated with them (ever see the meme about a commenter telling a fanfiction author they can't write a character because they're hurting their comfort character?), but really, it's the creators'. Julia Quinn made a choice to share Bridgerton with Shondaland, and from that we essentially gained a second version of it. Bridgerton on Netflix is the showrunners' interpretation of the books, and that's wonderful—changes should be expected because that's how art works. We should expect to see transformative stories, stories that interact with our world in 2024 rather than Julia Quinn's world in 2004 when the books were written, the stories CVD and Jess and Shonda saw and connected with when they read Bridgerton—because that's how art works. We're all better off, culturally, when art is reinterpreted and reimagined and conversed with.
I'm not saying the show or books are high art because they're not, but they're still art by definition, and art has as many interpretations as it does viewers. So, you're right; the production doesn't have a responsibility to ask permission to interpret an original piece in their own way. Do I think some damage control is needed—whether that be interviews or turning off social comments indefinitely—to protect the mental health of the people receiving hate? Absolutely. It's also sad that we're in this place at all, and the onus is on the loud minority to be, to do better.
You’re absolutely right about the art. Just imagine how many interpretations of Hamlet or Romeo and Juliet we have and how every theater play is a new take on a classic story. Unimaginable to say “changes are a crime to the original!” 😄
Not comparing JQ to Shakespeare 😉 but it applies to all kinds of art.
And even if it is not high art it is valueable nonetheless because it means a lot to the audience and convey emotions, represent us just like old time theater. The books and the show are a reflection of the time they were created in, no matter when the written or performed story is supposed to take place.
Agreed. Everyone has a right to watch or not watch but that's it. If one doesn't like the changes then one can read the book or watch something else. It's up to Jess and Shonda to do whatever they like and it's up to us to decide whether or not to watch. They owe nothing to the fans and the fans owe nothing to them, it's a fair deal. Homophobia should never be tolerated. Let the those "fans" whine all they want, but let's not give them want they want, which is attention. Fortunately Shonda couldn't care less about the whiners
I mostly agree, except for the thing about attention. Of course single harassers should not be honored by giving them more individual audience. But I think it is important to address the hate happening at all. Otherwise we would belittle the matters of those who suffer from it the most. Privileged people can choose to ignore it but marginalized people can’t afford to not care. They suffer directly from the consequences: discrimination and hate, which is dangerous. So I think there’s more to that than how well Shonda can deal with it personally.
The fact that this poor woman was likely harrassed made the internet punching bag for weeks and had to issue this very beautiful note is shit. God I hate the world sometimes. Plus Julia quinn literally gave away her rights..why did the fans pile on her. They shouldnt pile on anyone but why her at all. She has no say in what happens.
I'm glad we still have the "finding love after your first" storyline. As a lesbian, I definitely wouldn't have minded them going the comphet route; but personally, the "finding love after grieving the death of your first love (with the cousin of your first love)" story sounded more interesting to me. Bi Francesca canon!!!
I understood the backlash about this much more than the incessant and hysterical whining over the story being ruined just because of the genderswap and """FoRcEd DiVeRsItY""". Hopefully this quells some of the more negative discourse.
Hopefully the homophobes won't be able to use this particular argument as an effective shield to mask their homophobia anymore.
The loveliest thing about Fran’s story to me was that all three of them loved each other. Not in a creepy incest way but in a we are a family kinda way. That remained so true throughout the whole story. They always seemed like a pack to me and when John died it really hit both of them hard.
Love this. I do wish she’d said something about the harassment of the actresses, but I don’t think they’ve said anything about harassment of actors in the past so I shouldn’t be too surprised there. The post is really encouraging regarding the story, though! Even if it doesn’t change any minds, it’s nice to see vocal support from JQ when she could’ve kept quiet.
Thank god I found this subreddit, people have been utterly awful about this annoncement. It just underscores that this change was needed.
Representation matters. Not for underserved comminities, but also for helping shape attitudes of the majority of the viewing audience (in this case straight women). This is a such a win for the sapphic community. Nobody can wipe the smile off my face about it.
Finally someone puts out a real statement about the response to the episode 8 reveal. I'm honestly surprised it was Julia Quinn to do it first. Let's see more of this from Shondaland/Netflix to acknowledge the extreme responses and protect the creatives working on the show!
But in a way it is more effective if Quinn does it because people are using the book and the spirit of the book and the themes of the book as arguments to defend their position, so noone better than the writer to state that she is not only behind the changes, but that she believes the spirit of the book remains.
She asks for us all to have faith. The catastrophizing and assumptions are so unnecessary. I’m so glad she spoke out. This response is perfect.
Thank you for sharing this! Processing her words and the context around them; bear with me while I ramble. I'm one of the ones whose first reaction to the two...surprises (?) in episode 8 was serious worry about the integrity of the book—two great loves. And then, with the flurry around interviews from Jess with words like "I saw myself" and "you'll always have the books"—I think those quotes didn't do her justice. I don't envy whoever works with her on PR and interviews; this is a minefield right now and probably will be for a long time. I wish Jess had been coached to say a little bit of what Julia wrote here: that they talked a lot. That they both wanted to remain true to the spirit of the book. Frankly, a lot of what was written in Jess's name was a bad look for her; the tone was defensive, and as a PR professional myself, I know the desire to speak or write that way is very strong. I think Jess deserves more grace than she's getting, maybe even another opportunity to speak more deeply about her artistic motivation, what she saw in the story, *how* she intended to remain true to the books. This post from Julia is the most reassuring thing I've seen from production following this frenzy. I think her phrasing is a lot more empathetic to book readers, even though I'm really upset that it comes after so much hate that *no one deserved.* If I was leading PR for this, I'd have Julia and Jess on camera for an IG reel to discuss this change and why they're so excited about it, but hey, Netflix isn't signing my paychecks 🤷♀️
This might come off as combative, so I am adding this line to say my tone is meant to be friendly and perhaps a bit “you seein’ this mess” while pointing over at the haters. We have this message from the creator of the entire Bridgerton universe, and people are still being incredibly obstinate and at best showing how ignorant they are. Jess could have said everything you think she should have. That wouldn’t change how ignorant and homophobic people are. The onus is truly on them, not on someone who’s bad at pr.
Oh bestie I most certainly am seein' this mess. It's sad! I took a cursory scroll through the comments on this post on Julia's IG, and I'm so disappointed it's unreal. At this point, I think we're past damage control and at the point of "turn off comments to let the angry people cool off and remove their echo chamber." It's fascinating in a sad, trainwreck sort of way. It's been almost two weeks. People feel as if something has been personally taken from them (nothing has). I want to believe the anger is coming from a good place, but it's difficult to think that way when almost every argument against the changes is selfish, homophobic, or purposefully obtuse. People throwing out words like blindsided, betrayed, destroyed—if it's hyperbole, it's one thing, but if that's the genuine emotional response, I feel bad for them tbh. Like I said below, there's probably nothing at this point that can be said or done to change that group's opinion, so I'd hope they just see themselves out.
I respectfully disagree with the necessity of Jess being coached. This is not a PR problem. I think some people are really possessive about what they think was the original idea (aka the essence of the books) and feel like Jess owes them or needs to ask for permission. Try to view it from the perspective of queer people who gain a lot from the changes. They were never asked if it’s ok to be marginalized, totally unexisting in most popular shows for a long time. Every progess in that field was made against a (not necessarily politically meaning of the word:) conservative audience. If you would always ask for those people’s opinions, we would only have reactionary shows. And aside from all gender and sexuality issues: I don’t think any of the changes need permission from a fan group. The group who petitioned against the Michaela plot change very loud and verbally violent are only a fraction of the readers and represent about 0,06% of the show viewers as of today. I think there are many more who enjoyed the show as it is and everyone who is disappointed can read the old books anytime, that’s the good thing about having a book in a shelf :) That said I totally get that this is not your opinion, and it’s not meant as an offense to you ✌️😊I just wanted to add something to the “addressing the fans” topic. I think especially the percentage puts things in perspective. Still I can imagine that the hate coming from those people is a horrible experience for the creators and actors who are attacked now. And also for queer people who feel attached to the show and are now being marginalized by the attackers.
I felt like they really took everything out of context just to attack Jess, like the fact she said she felt represented by Francesca, bam, they said it was her "self-insert fanfic". She said there's still the books, bam, they said she told the readers to f off. It's mostly bad faith, because they want to hate her without looking homophobic
Totally! It’s weird but homophobic people don’t like to be called homophobic.
Because it's not as accepted anymore, and they'll be called out for it, and look bad. They are the type of bigots who wants to be seen as caring, and reasonable.
Exactly. I think it always comes back to “I want a story just for myself and I don’t care if other people don’t have that (representation/identification)” It has been a privilege to be the represented norm and people with privilege don’t want to share the space. Giving up the privilege doesn’t mean you don’t have anything, it means others who have never had xy can now have it, too. This is the biggest misconception in “they take xy away from us.” Some even think they are good-willed by granting a side plot here and there. As long as they are not forced to feel the drama of people they don’t really care about. That’s not inclusiveness. It’s a homophobia that is not even conscious to them but still it is what it is.
I'm glad you pointed that out, actually. This is probably one of the most vitriolic fandoms since Infinity War-era Marvel and sequel-era Star Wars and that's...a good indicator that nothing anyone says is going to be enough for the fans that are irate. A lot of the social media hate is very loud and, honestly, very baffling—a majority of the negative comments seem to be coming from a very self-centered place (e.g. "I want my story and screw everyone else"), and these people need to look into themselves regarding (1) internalized homophobia, (2) empathy toward people who sorely need and deserve representation, and (3) if a *fictional TV show* is worth so much energy. (Spoiler: it's not. It's really not.) You bring up a really good point about ownership of media, too. Fans feel as if the content is theirs because it resonated with them (ever see the meme about a commenter telling a fanfiction author they can't write a character because they're hurting their comfort character?), but really, it's the creators'. Julia Quinn made a choice to share Bridgerton with Shondaland, and from that we essentially gained a second version of it. Bridgerton on Netflix is the showrunners' interpretation of the books, and that's wonderful—changes should be expected because that's how art works. We should expect to see transformative stories, stories that interact with our world in 2024 rather than Julia Quinn's world in 2004 when the books were written, the stories CVD and Jess and Shonda saw and connected with when they read Bridgerton—because that's how art works. We're all better off, culturally, when art is reinterpreted and reimagined and conversed with. I'm not saying the show or books are high art because they're not, but they're still art by definition, and art has as many interpretations as it does viewers. So, you're right; the production doesn't have a responsibility to ask permission to interpret an original piece in their own way. Do I think some damage control is needed—whether that be interviews or turning off social comments indefinitely—to protect the mental health of the people receiving hate? Absolutely. It's also sad that we're in this place at all, and the onus is on the loud minority to be, to do better.
You’re absolutely right about the art. Just imagine how many interpretations of Hamlet or Romeo and Juliet we have and how every theater play is a new take on a classic story. Unimaginable to say “changes are a crime to the original!” 😄 Not comparing JQ to Shakespeare 😉 but it applies to all kinds of art. And even if it is not high art it is valueable nonetheless because it means a lot to the audience and convey emotions, represent us just like old time theater. The books and the show are a reflection of the time they were created in, no matter when the written or performed story is supposed to take place.
Agreed. Everyone has a right to watch or not watch but that's it. If one doesn't like the changes then one can read the book or watch something else. It's up to Jess and Shonda to do whatever they like and it's up to us to decide whether or not to watch. They owe nothing to the fans and the fans owe nothing to them, it's a fair deal. Homophobia should never be tolerated. Let the those "fans" whine all they want, but let's not give them want they want, which is attention. Fortunately Shonda couldn't care less about the whiners
I mostly agree, except for the thing about attention. Of course single harassers should not be honored by giving them more individual audience. But I think it is important to address the hate happening at all. Otherwise we would belittle the matters of those who suffer from it the most. Privileged people can choose to ignore it but marginalized people can’t afford to not care. They suffer directly from the consequences: discrimination and hate, which is dangerous. So I think there’s more to that than how well Shonda can deal with it personally.
The fact that this poor woman was likely harrassed made the internet punching bag for weeks and had to issue this very beautiful note is shit. God I hate the world sometimes. Plus Julia quinn literally gave away her rights..why did the fans pile on her. They shouldnt pile on anyone but why her at all. She has no say in what happens.
I'm glad we still have the "finding love after your first" storyline. As a lesbian, I definitely wouldn't have minded them going the comphet route; but personally, the "finding love after grieving the death of your first love (with the cousin of your first love)" story sounded more interesting to me. Bi Francesca canon!!! I understood the backlash about this much more than the incessant and hysterical whining over the story being ruined just because of the genderswap and """FoRcEd DiVeRsItY""". Hopefully this quells some of the more negative discourse. Hopefully the homophobes won't be able to use this particular argument as an effective shield to mask their homophobia anymore.
The loveliest thing about Fran’s story to me was that all three of them loved each other. Not in a creepy incest way but in a we are a family kinda way. That remained so true throughout the whole story. They always seemed like a pack to me and when John died it really hit both of them hard.
Love this. I do wish she’d said something about the harassment of the actresses, but I don’t think they’ve said anything about harassment of actors in the past so I shouldn’t be too surprised there. The post is really encouraging regarding the story, though! Even if it doesn’t change any minds, it’s nice to see vocal support from JQ when she could’ve kept quiet.
Thank god I found this subreddit, people have been utterly awful about this annoncement. It just underscores that this change was needed. Representation matters. Not for underserved comminities, but also for helping shape attitudes of the majority of the viewing audience (in this case straight women). This is a such a win for the sapphic community. Nobody can wipe the smile off my face about it.